THIS WILL be candidate Amber Morley’s second bid to dethrone the Ward 3 incumbent councillor. Photo by Tom Godfrey.
Two strong candidates have registered with the City so far to bring political changes to Ward 3 Etobicoke Lakeshore in the upcoming municipal elections in October.
A social worker and pizza maker are fighting to throw out long-time incumbent councillor Mark Grimes, who has held the ward for 19 years.
Amber Morley on June 18 threw her hat in the ring to kick off her second attempt to send the incumbent packing.
PIZZA MAKER Zeynel (Dino) Ari has been out in the ward erecting signs and seeking votes. Staff photo.
Morley launched her second bid for council at St. Margaret’s Anglican Church, on Sixth Street, with a free barbeque and calypso music.
Morley is described as an “experienced, local champion committed to working with residents to build strong neighbourhoods, affordable housing and community hubs.”
A former LAMP CHC employee and constituency assistant, she served on a number of boards and advisory committees with groups as the Remix Project and Laidlaw Foundation.
FAMILY attending Amber Morley’s campaign kickoff at St. Margaret’s New Toronto.
Several dozen community residents turned out to lend their support.
Also running is Zeynel Ari, also known as Dino from Dino’s Pizza, who has been out in the ward talking to voters and seeking their support.
Ari said one of his stores was recently robbed and he is fighting to reduce crime and violence in our community.
He also wants to be a role model for immigrants or newcomers to Canada.
It is not known if Grimes, who was first elected in 2003, will run again.
The lakefront riding has a population of 129,000 people, with more than 16% being over 65 years of age. The median age is 41.
There are almost 60,000 households, with about 57% of the population who have their own homes, according to City of Toronto statistics from a 2016 survey.
There are more than 48,000 immigrants in the riding, with the Top 10 countries being Poland, Ukraine, Philippines, India, United Kingdom, Italy, South Korea, Portugal, China and Russia Federation
Almost 30% of the residents, or more than 35,000, are visible minorities, which includes South Asian, Blacks, Chinese, Filipino, Latin America, Korean, Southeast Asian and Arab.
More than 33,000 people live or own their own condos in the ward; and more than 11,000, or almost 20% of residents, earn more than $150,000 yearly.